Baha'u'llah and the New Era
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Source: Bahá'í Library Online (bahai-library.com), curated by Jonah Winters. Used by permission of the curator. Original citation: John E. Esslemont, Baha'u'llah and the New Era, Wilmette: Bahá'í Publishing Trust, 1980, bahai-library.com.
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Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era

John E. Esslemont

Wilmette: Bahá'í Publishing Trust, 1980
original date

1923

single page

chapter 1

Copyright 1950, 1970, 1976, 1980 by the
National Spiritual Assembly of the
Bahá'ís of the United States

All rights reserved

Library of Congress
Esslemont, John Ebenezer,
1874-1925.
Bahá'u'lláh and the new era.

Bibliography:p.
Includes
index.
1. Bahá'ísm. 2. Bahá Ullah, 1817-1892.

I. Title.
BP365.E8
1980 ..................297'.89..................80-24305

First edition,
George Allen Unwin Ltd., London, 1923
First revised edition, Bahá'í Publishing
Committee, New York, 1937
Second revised edition, Bahá'í Publishing Committee,
Wilmette, 1950
Third revised edition, Bahá'í Publishing Trust, Wilmette, 1970

Fourth revised paper edition, Bahá'í Publishing Trust, Wilmette, 1976
Fourth
revised cloth edition, Bahá'í Publishing Trust, Wilmette, 1980
Fifth revised
paper edition, Bahá'í Publishing Trust, Wilmette, 1980

Printed in the
United States of America

Contents

(Click here to jump to a specific page (in a lightly formatted version).)

Preface
to 1937 Edition
vii

Preface
to 1950 Edition
ix

Preface
to 1970 Edition
xi

Introductionxiii

CHAPTER1
The
Glad Tidings
1

2
The
Bab: The Forerunner
11

3
Bahá'u'lláh:
The Glory of God
23

4
Abdu'l-Bahá:
The Servant of Bahá
51

5
What
Is a Bahá'í?
71

6
Prayer
88

7
Health
and Healing
101

8
Religious
Unity
116

9
True
Civilization
133

10
The
Way to Peace
156

11
Various
Ordinances and Teachings
175

12
Religion
and Science
197

13
Prophecies
Fulfilled by the Bahá'í Movement
211

14
Prophecies
of Bahá'u'lláh and Abdu'l-Bahá
234

15
Retrospect
and Prospect
252

Epilogue
283

Basic
References on the Bahá'í Faith287

Index289

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Prefaces
to Baha'u'llah and the New Era

Preface
to 1937 Edition

With the publication of "Baha'u'llah and the New Era" more than ten years ago,
the Bahá'í Faith was given its first well- conceived, thorough exposition by a
student of the teachings. Recognizing its value as the most satisfactory introduction
to the Cause, Bahá'ís in both East and West have found Dr. Esslemont's book so
helpful that it has been translated into some thirty different languages. As
Dr. Esslemont himself recognized, the Faith entered a new phase of its history
after the ascension of Abdu'l-Baha. The result is that the author's views, some
of them written prior to 1921, no longer, on certain aspects of the subject, correspond
to the evolutionary character of the Faith. His treatment of events and social
conditions then existing, moreover, no longer appears fully relevant. Unavoidably,
a few errors of fact had entered his text, while his explanation of the stations
of the Bab and of Abdu'l-Baha have been replaced in the minds of Bahá'ís by the
authoritative interpretations since made by the first Guardian of the Faith, Shoghi
Effendi. The
present edition therefore represents a revision made by the American National
Spiritual Assembly, acting under the advice and approval of Shoghi Effendi. These
revisions in no respect alter the original plan of Dr. Esselmont's book, nor affect
the major portion of his text. Their purpose has been to amplify the author's
discussion in a few passages by the addition of material representing the fuller
knowledge available since his lamented death, and newer translations of his quotations
from Bahá'í Sacred Writings.
Bahá'í Publishing Committee January, 1937

Preface
to 1950 Edition

With this edition the American Bahá'í Publishing Committee takes over copyright
and other interests in "Baha'u'llah and the New Era" from Messrs. George Allen
Unwin Ltd., of London, England, through whom the late Dr. J. E. Esslemont published
his famous book more than twenty years ago. Under arrangement with the British
publishers, the Committee has since 1928 brought out eleven printings, in addition
to the first American edition imported by Brentano's of New York. This
edition does not displace the text as it has appeared since major revision was
made in the book under the direction of the Guardian of the Faith in 1937, as
the time has not come for anything like a thorough recasting of the book to make
its references to world conditions completely contemporaneous. Dr. Esslemont's
work endures as a trustworthy introduction to the history and teachings of the
Bahá'í Faith. Its translation into some thirty different languages attests its
appeal to students in the East as well as the West. It
should be added that any further revision of the text in the future is subject
to approval by Shoghi Effendi. The Committee has no authority to pass upon revisions
which may be desired by Bahá'ís of other countries for their particular need.

Bahá'í Publishing Committee December, 1950

Preface to 1970 Edition

Since 1937 no revision
has been made to the text of Dr. Esslemont's book, although in 1950 some minor
corrections were introduced. On the other hand, the diffusion and development
of the Bahá'í Faith since that time have been tremendous, and there has been added
to Bahá'í bibliography a rich legacy of incomparable expositions, translations
and historical accounts from the pen of Shoghi Effendi, Guardian of the Faith
and the appointed interpreter of its Sacred Writings. It
has therefore been deemed necessary to bring the book up to date in order to maintain
its usefulness for modern readers. This has been done with a minimum of alteration
to the text, and chiefly by the use of footnotes and of an epilogue giving the
current statistics and new developments in the organic unfoldment of the Bahá'í
Faith. Dr. Esslemont's
book continues to be one of the most widely used introductory books on the Bahá'í
Faith, as evidenced by the fact that since 1937 the number of its translations
has increased from thirty to fifty-eight.
Bahá'í Publishing Trust

Introduction

In
December 1914, through a conversation with friends who had met Abdu'l-Bahá, and
the loan of a few pamphlets, I first became acquainted with the Bahá'í teachings.
I was at once struck by their comprehensiveness, power and beauty. They impressed
me as meeting the great needs of the modern world more fully and satisfactorily
than any other presentation of religion which I had come across -- an impression
which subsequent study has only served to deepen and confirm.

In
seeking for fuller knowledge about the movement I found considerable difficulty
in obtaining the literature I wanted, and soon conceived the idea of putting together
the gist of what I learned in the form of a book, so that it might be more easily
available for others. When communication with Palestine was reopened after the
war, I wrote to Abdu'l-Bahá and enclosed a copy of the first nine chapters of
the book, which was then almost complete in rough draft. I received a very kind
and encouraging reply, and a cordial invitation to visit Him in Haifa and bring
the whole of my manuscript with me. The invitation was gladly accepted, and I
had the great privilege of spending two and a half months as the guest of Abdu'l-Bahá
during the winter of 1919-1920. During this visit Abdu'l-Bahá discussed the book
with me on various occasions. He gave several valuable suggestions for its improvement
and proposed that, when I had revised the manuscript, He would have the whole
of it translated into Persian so that He could read it through and amend or correct
it where necessary. The revisal and translation were carried out as suggested,
and Abdu'l-Bahá found time, amid His busy life, to correct some three and a half
chapters (Chapters I, II, V and part of III) before He passed away. It is a matter
of profound regret to met that Abdu'l-Bahá was not able to complete the correction
of the manuscript, as the value of the book would thereby have been greatly enhanced.
The whole of the manuscript has been carefully revised, however, by a committee
of the National Bahá'í Assembly of England1, and its publication approved by that
Assembly.

I am greatly indebted to Miss E. J. Rosenberg, Mrs. Claudia S. Coles,
Mirza Lutfu'llah S. Hakim, Messrs. Roy Wilhelm and Mountfort Mills and many other
kind friends for valuable help in the preparation of the work.

As regards the
transliteration of Arabic and Persian names and words, the system adopted in this
book is that recently recommended by Shoghi Effendi for use throughout the Bahá'í
World.
J. E. ESSLEMONT

1 The first publication of Bahá'u'lláh and the New Era was in 1923, and at that
time there was a National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of England; however,
the name of the institution was subsequently changed in 1930 to the
National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the British Isles, and more
recently to its present designation of the National Spiritual Assembly of the
Bahá'ís of the United Kingdom.

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previous at archive.org.../esslemont_bahaullah_new_era;
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History
Formatted 1999 by Casper Voogt.
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-- Baha'u'llah and the New Era (Used by permission of the curator)